


What are we?

by Binabi



Category: Start-Up (Korea TV)
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-29
Updated: 2021-02-01
Packaged: 2021-03-15 03:27:35
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 8,749
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29057451
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Binabi/pseuds/Binabi
Summary: The story of the two loneliest people in the start up world, who develop a passionate yet gentle romance.
Relationships: Han Ji Pyeong/Won In Jae
Comments: 17
Kudos: 71





	1. Distraction or more?

'Won Injae!'

Won Injae felt a strong grip on her wrist and faced her mother, brushing her hand off and attempting to manage a cool facial expression, despite her fiery temper. 

'Are you happy now? Are you satisfied? How could you be that foolish, not staying calm in front of all those people?'

'What was I supposed to do, then? Just stand there, while Dad was obviously trying to replace my position with that incompetent idiot? You know I went down this path for you, I always hated business anyway', she briskly replied.

She was met with a harsh slap across her cheek, and felt stunned as she stumbled backward. It wasn't the first time she had been hit, but it was the first time outside home. She turned around quickly, afraid to be seen upset and have her face read as regret. 

'What do you mean, for me? You ruined all our plans, you must feel so good about it! You're a nobody to your Dad now. To both of us now!'

'No, I don't feel good at all. I really feel like shit', Injae muttered bitterly and tried to hold back her tears, walking off from her still yelling mother. She was suffocated to be in this building, in this family, living this life, hating herself for feeling so small. Once she was in the bathroom, she completely lost it. It wasn't a work day, and the only people present in the building at all were a few staff and the meeting that she had been in, hours prior to her outburst. She could afford to lose her sense of dignity and fall apart in this mostly empty building. She was crying in the worst type of way, the kind that physically hurt, all the built up stress and sadness she had strongly tried to hold back for so long, finally being released.

After she had stopped crying and took some time to calm down, she washed her face and gathered her belongings, looking at herself in the mirror before she left. She smiled, a little inside joke she had with herself whenever she rarely cried, knowing it would likely be years before she would meet her red eyes in the mirror like this again. As she cautiously walked toward the elevator on the top floor, checking if there were any people even though it was now approaching evening, it was so cold and she had never felt so lonely.

When the seventh floor opened, she had been closing her eyes for a while and was slightly starting to doze off. Despite the building being extravagant, her father couldn't be bothered calling workers to fix the slow elevator. A wood scent coaxed Injae to look up. She hadn't noticed that a person had come in. _Han Jipyeong?_

She knew him as her sister's platonic/childhood penpal, Halmeoni's "good boy", the kind man who came to help out at the family house. She wasn't as familiar with him as Halmeoni and Dalmi were. There was always a gap between the rest of her family and her whenever he came by, but he was comfortable to be around even in awkward moments, and easy to greet. He also sometimes came around to help her father with business, and she had noticed he seemed to do so with some reluctance. She had often noticed him walking in too, and knew he had cute dimples. He was sharp yet warm, and whenever they spoke he kept his distance. He was always respectful and treated her like an equal in business rather than a useless pretty thing to look at like most men around her did, despite his superior experience. To see him in front of her like this, clear and not a passing blur like usual, caught her off guard. 

'Hi? Won Injae ssi? Nice to see you. Are you okay?', his eyebrows furrowed in concern. _He's standing so close._

'Hi. Yes, this elevator is just moving slow as always. I keep dozing off', she laughed, and he could see she had been crying from the pink corners of her eyes to her stuffy sounding voice.

'Ah, I see. What were you doing until this time?', he asked softly.

'Just some work, you know', she looked away. He was staring at her with an unreadable expression, before he placed his thumb and forefinger on the still pink corner of her right eye. She stiffened and looked down, trying not to panic, trying not to like it.

'Don't overwork', he let go and looked at her with warm eyes, smiling at her.

'I don't really overwork, Mr Han. It's just that it's not been the best day. W-Well I mean, I didn't work today but I had a meeting. But the meeting is work too, I guess', she said sarcastically.

'Indeed, meetings are work. Are you okay though? You don't really come by anymore..I know you have your other family here but-yeah', he stammered and tried to laugh it off.

'Oh, I'm not really a family person, though you probably could tell. Lots to focus on, you know.'

'I just hope you can come around a bit more, it's not the same without you.'

Injae dully nodded, not believing him. All she did for the most part was sit silently while they enjoyed their inside jokes. She had often caught him staring at her in those moments with a cautious expression, and thought she constantly killed the mood for him with her awkward silence. The only other reason for that kind of facial expression would be that he felt intimidated around her, and no way could someone like Han Jipyeong be intimidated by anyone. It wasn't awkward now, though. It was silent, but comfortable. He was looking out, thinking the elevator must be broken again due to the loud thud before turning back, facing Injae, laughing awkwardly when he realised how close they were.

She stared at his mouth. He didn't say anything, remaining still when he realised where Injae was looking. _What is this situation right now?_ His expression faltered and he bit his lip nervously. If the distance between them was unusual, Injae made it even more so and moved even closer. He couldn't meet her eyes now, eyes shifting anywhere but her face, heart beating fast, and he didn't dare touch her. He told himself that she had been visibly upset when he saw her, she still was, and he wasn't going to take advantage of that. He should be gentle with her. But he couldn't focus on that when her finger rested against the hollow of his dimple.

'You know, you're the one person in my life who hasn't said they hate me. Not that we know each other well, but maybe the reason for you not saying that is exactly because we don't know each other well.' She smiled sadly and Jipyeong's heart sank.

'Why would you say that?'

'Because it's true. It is what it is', she felt too empty to care about revealing how she felt about herself to him.

'Don't say that, what's wrong? Won Injae ssi, I-'

She kissed him, and his mind went blank. He couldn't comprehend what was happening as he tentatively kissed her soft lips back. He lowered himself to meet her height slightly, and felt glad when she sighed in relief, lips parting. Her hands were on his shoulders now, pushing him against the back of the elevator to his surprise. He gripped the elevator bar and reminded himself not to touch her, but he did kiss her back, deeply. Her body was pressing against his, almost hugging him, she couldn't believe what she was doing but he was so warm, and his lips were addictive. It felt like her stress was being blown away. Their mouths danced together and whatever unknown tension from work stress that Han Jipyeong had vanished, melting when Injae pressed her body to his. _Stop, stop, stop._ He pulled away, breathing hard.

'I-I'm sorry', his ears were burning red, she couldn't help but laugh. She couldn't believe she wasn't feeling shy, but seeing him shy did something strange to her. He looked down and sighed, both hands still on the elevator bar. 

'Don't be. I'm the one who jumped all over you. I'm not in my right mind, seriously.' He looked at her, his gaze contemplating.

'What will you do about me, then? I'm not in my right mind because of you now.'

'What d-'

'Can I touch you?', he asked softly. His husky voice and close wood scent sent butterflies down her chest.

'No', she knew it was unfair and couldn't believe how bold she dared to be, but she wanted to test him.

'Okay, Won Injae ssi..', his voice was light but his pupils were dark, focused on the arm wrapped around his neck.

'I w-was just joking', she let go. She could slap herself for stumbling over her words. 

'Look Won Injae ssi, I'm not sure why you seem upset..or what pushed you to..but I won't hold it against you. Whether you want to talk about it or not, it's okay. I'll do what you ask and want', he straightened himself and reached out to gently tucked her long hair behind her ear. 

'Mr Han..'

'If you want, I can make you feel better anytime.' Injae blushed, thinking she was probably interpreting his words wrong, considering how soft and innocent his tone was. His wicked smile gave it away. _Am I the only one with a pervert mind here?_

'No, I shouldn't have done that. I'm..um', she mumbled, finally noticing they had been on the bottom floor for a long while now. She suddenly dashed out. _Am I seriously running away from him?_

Han Jipyeong shook his head in amusement, staring at her retreating figure, picking up the handbag she had left behind on the floor. _How random was this? She's surprisingly cute. How could I say that? What if I made her uncomfortable? Han Jipyeong, you let yourself go today.._

_What just happened?_


	2. Networking party

It had been two weeks before she talked to him again. She saw him almost everyday between then, of course, but did everything in her power to not be alone with him, or talk to him at all. She knew he probably had her handbag, and felt glad her wallet had been in her pocket. Everything in her bag was useless and could be replaced, including the bag itself, she would remind herself. She acted busy. The night she arrived home to her apartment after the elevator incident, she wondered if she really had gone crazy. She was mortified and worried he would take it the wrong way, that she had used him because she was upset. The only reason she could think of was that she wasn't thinking clearly. Whatever rush of sudden confidence she received when she saw his shy expression before and after they kissed, disappeared the moment he said what he said, clearly seeming not to mind being a distraction for her, if that was the case. His heated eyes, the prominent dimple and sly smile, she couldn't get him off her mind. _Is that what he does with girls, is he familiar with that? Is he used to being used, and using them back?_

Even now, getting ready for the networking party, she had many worries but he was there, in the back of her mind. After quitting her "job" and creating some distance between herself and her family, avoiding Halmeoni too because Jipyeong came over, she spent a lot of time alone in her apartment or at cafes. Deciding to join the Sandbox as a mentor was out of pure boredom. Injae was privileged enough to do so, but that wasn't why. She wanted to find herself, she didn't know who she was outside the strict commands her family had given her, her whole life. She knew a lot about business even if she didn't like it so much, and wanted to help people.

It was funny that Dalmi had been the one to push her into working at Sandbox, a company designed to assist beginners. They were talking about the future one weekend, and Injae hadn't vented exactly, but she opened up to her sister and was relieved to find that Dalmi had been in her position once before, now content as a school teacher. Injae had never felt inferior to her younger sister before but she did then, and voiced it to her sister, only to hear Dalmi's scolding words, so similar to how their father would speak.

_You can't say that. Everyone walks life at their own pace, we aren't put in this world to have a race with the people in our lives._

_Even if you feel inferior, fight against it. Who says you have to be 23-24 and have everything sorted out?_

_One day, you might look back and regret not enjoying every moment, the beauty of existing in this world at all, because you wanted to beat others._

_All we have to do is be happy for each other's progress, without diminishing our own._

The party was overcrowded, colours sparking from each direction, feigned laughter all around, soft music in the background a grounding contrast to the blur surrounding Injae. She walked around, greeting people here and there, introducing herself as a new mentor and squeezing young hands assuredly, promising to give advice if it turned out she wasn't assigned to their groups.

Honestly, Injae had been hesitating at the entrance before she walked in, dreading it and wondering if she would regret this night both as an introvert who becomes drained easily at social interaction, and a person who already had a secure and comfortable job, as vile as it was. In the end, the excited young faces and earnest speeches of becoming successful won her over, and she admired their energy. The other mentors appeared almost bored, but she wasn't at all.

At one point, everyone had someone to talk to and she stood with only a glass to keep her company, she wondered if she looked as jittery as she felt. She contemplated upon the inspiring words she had heard, and wondered what she had been doing with her life up to now. _People really live their lives that fully, more aspirations and hope than they can handle, it's no wonder they probably never feel empty. Just hearing them talk makes me feel less emptier._

Two and a half hours later, she took another glass of the blue drink that was being offered, dizzy now. She put her glass down on a table nearby to place both hands against her temples, closing her eyes for a moment and willing her headache to away, willing herself to calm down. The sounds of people talking and laughing felt almost taunting, growing louder and closer with every second. The elevator incident came to mind again. _Stop thinking about it already. Why do you keep thinking more about him in that moment, and less about what a fool you made out of yourself?_

She felt a warm hand on her back.

'What d-oh. Speak of the devil', she blurted out in shock. _Why was he even there?_

'Speak of the devil? You didn't say anything about me here. Were you thinking about me, Won Injae ssi?', Han Jipyeong raised his eyebrows, suppressing a smile. His slightly trembling hand on her back was the only sign that betrayed his confidence. He was wearing a completely white suit and looked the picture of perfection, warm eyes regarding Injae carefully, despite her blatant rudeness for the past two weeks. He was holding her handbag in the other hand.

'No. Mr Han..what are you doing here, by the way? I mean, it's nice to see you-'

'I'm a mentor for the third year in a row. Dalmi said you were going to be here, I didn't see you, so I believed you had decided not to come. I'm glad you came. Are you okay? You were holding your head for quite a whi-'

'I didn't know you were a mentor. Well, it's nice to see you too. I kind of have to go', she looked away and ran off again. Jipyeong sighed and walked quickly after her. He was aware she had been avoiding him, and felt pretty disappointed about it, but also understood that it would be difficult for Injae to feel comfortable around him again. He didn't wish to bother her, but wanted a chance for the both of them to talk about what happened, because like it or not, there had been a shift the moment she had kissed him. 

Injae went to an empty room upstairs, and clenched her eyes shut in embarrassment when Jipyeong came in, closing the door before he abruptly stood right next to her, shoulders brushing, before placing some distance between them.

'It's not like you to avoid people, Won Injae ssi. I'm sorry if I make you uncomfortable, but I want to say a few things', she nodded without looking at him.

'I get it, I really do. Maybe you didn't have a reason for why you did what you did that day, and that's okay. Things happen. I liked it, to be honest', he laughed sheepishly, before continuing. 'I want to give you space, but don't want us to avoid each other because of it. I said we can just forget about it if that's what you want. This is just difficult for me because-'

'Because?'

'Why are you avoiding me?', he ignored the question.

'I was embarrassed, Mr Han. Like you said, I don't usually avoid people or confrontation, but I didn't know what to say. What I did was inappropriate', she looked at him now, trying to cover up how she looked at his lips first. But he saw it.

'Y-yes, it was on a more intimate level with each other than how you and I are used to, considering the not really close relationship we had..have. It makes sense, but I wish we had talked this out earlier, and that you didn't run away from me', he smiled at her.

'I'm sorry. It has nothing to do with you though, it's all on me. It's funny that the idea of talking to you made me more nervous than how it is actually talking to you. I'm grateful to you for basically not being a jerk to me about it'. 

'Don't thank me for doing the bare minimum', he shook his head.

'And I didn't know what to say to you also because..you offered me something and I'm not used to that kind of deal.'

'Deal?', his low husky voice and hand reaching out to brush the hair away from her neck, fingers grazing, sent goosebumps all over her body. She stared at him suspiciously, he was openly flirting with her now.

'You said you can make me feel better anytime', she kept staring, cheeks heated. He burst out laughing, hiding his face before facing her again, his ears red.

'Oh, I-I meant it as a frien-I got carried away. You didn't have to take that statement seriously.'

'What do you mean?'

'You were always attractive to me. Having someone like you kiss me, made me greedy. That's why you shouldn't feel burdened about what happened, I probably enjoyed it more than you', he replied, hint of shame in his voice. He accidentally dropped her bag and both their hands met as they tried to pick it up. She stared at him in shock.

'But you barely touched me? I basically forced myself upon you.'

'I kissed you back because I wanted to and couldn't resist, honestly. You think I'd be able to stop if I touched you? When you were already upset? But don't get me wrong, I wanted you. I would've done anything you asked me, if it made you feel better', his heated stare made her look away. _Why does that particular sentence from his mouth do something to me?_

Wow, he sure spoke boldly for someone whose hand was trembling in hers. The way he was making her feel comfortable, respected, desirable and beautiful all at once flustered her, but that surge of confidence was rising within her again. She stood up, leaving the bag on the floor. He did the same, letting her hand go.

'I can't ask you how you could say something like that to me, since I was the inappropriate one first. The fact that I even considered it means you're attractive to me too', he stepped closer to her.

'I'm glad you think of me that way. So how do we end this conversation? Do you want to go back to what we were, Won Injae ssi?', his thumb stroked her lip gently. She tried to kiss him in answer, but he held her shoulders back.

'Answer me'.

'What about you, then?', she challenged.

'I want to be your friend?', he smiled teasingly. _H_ _e can see right through me._

'So friends do this, Mr Han?', she touched his parted lips, teasing him now. She was close enough to hear his sharp exhale. He leaned in and kissed her gently, hand gripping her wrist, pushing her against the door, locking the door, so no one would interrupt. She parted her lips, his tongue meeting hers and kiss growing deeper, cupping her face gently and moving his body against hers, finding a rhythm in the contact they were sharing. She bit his lip hard and caught him off guard, kissing him harder while he tried to keep up, sharply inhaling. She couldn't get enough of his inviting soft lips. She liked that he seemed to like it when he couldn't keep up with her, hearing and feeling his stifled moans in her mouth. She wanted to make him unable to hold back, that couldn't be done with kissing alone. His body betrayed his attempt to seem calm.

He tried to move away slightly, worrying he might put her off with his reaction to her, but she moved against it even more, eliciting a strangled soft moan from him, breaking off the kiss. He was surprised and tried to control himself, he looked at her like she was made of stars, she wondered if he knew how much she wanted to make him feel good, how confident she felt when he submitted to her. _How did I see him this many times and not want to know this side of him? Until that day in the elevator, I know I wasn't indifferent to him but I've never felt this way for anyone before._

'W-Won Injae ssi', he panted heavily, interrupting her train of thought.

'I-I don't know how we found ourselves in the same situation again, after trying to move on from the last one', she laughed, squeezing his shoulders. _I'll make you feel good._

'C-can you-ah, what are you-, she touched him there, wrapping her hand around it. He moaned loudly and she put a hand over his lips.

'Be quiet', she went down on her knees. He put a hand against the door to control his breathing. She unzipped and pulled his pants down, touching it through his boxers, before pulling his boxers down. 

'I-', her mouth immediately wrapped around it, not giving him a chance to say anything. His knees buckled at how good he felt, moaning as quietly as he possibly could, her mouth felt so good, too good for him to feel embarrassed and he started thrusting in her mouth, hands tangled through her hair. She pulled away, and he whined in frustration.

'Do you want me to continue?'

'Please..'

'You don't move, if you do I'll stop', he nodded eagerly at her and if he wasn't turned on enough, her heated gaze and swollen lips were enough to send him over the edge. She resumed, hand slowly moving up and down before putting it in her mouth, also as slowly as possible. He placed his head against the door, groaning in frustration, hands clenched. He felt her tongue lick over it once and tried to restrain his moan, looking down at her. _She was so damn beautiful._

'P-please.'

'Please?', she was so turned on, seeing him like this. _How did I avoid him for two weeks?_

'Please', him biting his lips cutely did it for her. She sucked him hard and fast, his moans growing louder and louder with every minute, body shaking with the effort to not move and finally being unable to hold back, thrusting deeply into her mouth again and again, holding her shoulders. 

'I-I'm going to-', she kept going and he released, panting. 

'Did I make you feel good, Han Jipyeong?', she looked up at him, eyebrow raised. His face and ears were so red, and he couldn't meet her eyes. She got some tissues from the table while he was still riding out his release and cleaned him up. She pulled his boxers up, kissing it before pulling his pants up as she stood up, zipping it all the way up, meeting his eyes. His eyes went back and forth nervously, and he ran a hand through his hair.

'You're calling me by my name now..'

'I think we're definitely intimate enough with each other to do so now', she smirked and touched his dimple. He took a moment to get himself together.

'Of course', he hesitated, wiping her lips. 

'I haven't done anything like this before if that's what you're thinking. You made me want to do it. We can talk about this whenever you want or not at all, I'll do whatever you ask and want', she kissed his cheek. _Is she flipping the cards now?_

'I see what this is', he looked down, blushing.

'What is it?'

'You're making fun of me.'

She smiled, finding him cute. She picked up her bag and unlocked the door to leave, while he stood there.

'I got carried away more than you did. It's not like you asked me to do it', she said sheepishly, back to him, the confidence she had earlier slightly dying down now. She walked off.

He wondered how he was going to face her again, and whether she would run away when they saw each other next time. He wasn't the kind to run away ever, but the fact that she had seen him in that state made him nervous. His cheeks heated as the face she had made when she had looked up at him came to his mind, her swollen lips, heated eyes, cleavage slightly showing, everything about her. How dirty one side of her was, how dirty his reaction to her had felt, he liked it all.

He sighed and covered his face with both hands. _What to do?_


	3. I'm your Sandbox

The following day, Injae was up early, taking a relaxing morning bath. She drifted her fingers through the foamy water, both wondering how she would do on the first day of her new job and what to do about Han Jipyeong. Although she knew she was the one who had the upper hand in whatever they had was called, she felt uneasy knowing that this was the first time she had wanted to do something with no personal gain. It was the first time she had felt curious about someone. Now that she was contemplating, he had known her family for over a decade and even Dalmi didn't know him as well as 10 years were worth. Dalmi had vaguely mentioned a few times that they had fought a few times because he was a complete liar, she had listened with a lack of interest back then. Now, she wondered how that man could be a good liar, when everything was written all over his face each time they spoke.

The day started with simply watching groups do activities in order to understand the level each of them were at, enabling the leaders to separate them into groups according to their abilities and interests. She spotted him in the first 10 minutes, blue mentor shirt, patting the backs of people reassuringly and bowing respectfully to everyone. She smiled to herself, finding the contrast between this self and the self she saw yesterday interesting. _He's always been a gentleman, that's for sure._

He met her eyes just then, and she smiled at him knowingly. Heat rushed to his face. Expression faltering, he looked away before he stole another glance, but she was already talking to someone else. She was cautious about whether to stay or leave during these activities, but found that most mentors would leave and usually come back right before the groups were assigned to a mentor. She decided to walk around the Sandbox building, giving herself a self tour, wanting to kill time. _How nice would it have been to have a comforting and safe place that cared about my success and dreams? You can tell that the founder behind this genuinely cares about people, rather than money. I wonder how she came to have this idea at all._

'Won Injae ssi!', she turned around. Ms Yoon waved, Han Jipyeong standing next to her, flustered already, near the post-its on the wall. _Do I summon people everytime I think of them?_

'Hi, it's so nice to be here. To see you on the first day like this, it's an honour for me', she walked over, shaking her hand with a bright smile, before directing her hand to Jipyeong, holding his hand a few seconds longer than necessary, caressing the inside of his palm. His mind started going to places it shouldn't be right now and he bit his lip, looking away. _He has a habit of doing that._

'Don't flatter me, haha. You'll do great, I'm sure. Have you met Mr Han already?', Ms Yoon looked at Jipyeong, whose face was slightly pink.

'Jipyeong and I are good friends', he glared at her, but she missed it.

'O-you two seem to know each other well, no wonder', she replied, surprised at the casual way she called his name.

'We do. By the way, I wanted to praise you for the idea behind this. The great impact this could have on young people, who have nothing but this to rely on, it's wonderful and selfless.'

'Thank you so much. I can say I've had my fair share of meeting selfless people, who have helped me to try to do the same. Sandbox truly means a lot to me, and I'm glad the message behind it has reached so many people.'

'You must've met such great people, then. The activities are a great idea, too, better than immediately making them work.'

'That's how it was before, actually. It caused burn out for many people. Mr Han gave me this idea, so all credit to him', she patted his shoulder jokingly.

'As expected of Jipyeong. Always caring about others', she smiled at him, daring him to meet her eyes. _Is he mad or something?_

'Thank you, no need to compliment. You're also caring about how others **feel** ', now it was her turn to glare at him.

'I better take my leave now. You two should go eat lunch, or Mr Han can give you a tour around. I look forward to what you two will do as mentors', Ms Yoon nodded kindly, patting both their shoulders before heading off.

Injae took a breath.

'So-', Jipyeong suddenly grabbed her wrist and took her outside. He let go of her wrist roughly, causing her to stumble.

'What was that? How can you drop formal tone? We're friends??'

'Can't I do that? You were fine with it yesterday..', she held her wrist, surprised.

'Being alone together and having people around us is two different things, Won Injae ssi..Injae'

'What can we do about it now? I can't go back and tell her we're not really friends, so just pretend to be my friend then. Try not to hate it so much', he sighed.

'It's not like that, you know it's not. I don't like my work and personal life to clash. Besides, I don't have friends.'

'..Then I can see why you would feel uncomfortable. I'm sorry. I was being compulsive', she felt guilty now. Her only friend was her sister, so she knew how he felt. The friend topic was uncomfortable for her as well. She also knew that anger could be a reaction to discomfort, how many times had she lashed out when she was misunderstood by both her families for not having friends? He stared at her, feeling bad for how he reacted. She was blinking hard, and she looked so vulnerable in that moment. Her confident aura overwhelmed him, but he liked it better than this. He felt curious, and curious wasn't acceptable.

'You're not such a bad first friend to have, I guess', his voice softened.

'Sure, and that's why you couldn't even greet me?'

'I didn't spot you this morning.'

'Why are you lying? You saw me. I was looking at you', she hesitated, watching his shy expression.

'Shouldn't you be too busy to look at me?', he dodged the question, looking down.

'I was clearly occupied with something yesterday, but did that stop me from looking at you?, she raised an eyebrow.

'What do you mean?', he gave her a chance to catch him off guard.

'When I was tasting you?', she said loudly. He clamped a hand over her mouth.

'S-stop it. You shouldn't tease me like this', she laughed at his whining, and the way their conversations seemed to shift very quickly.

'Let's talk later, cute stuff', she patted his shoulder, before walking off yet again, suppressing a smile.

Injae was so tired. What a day it was, she had been assigned her group and gone through each of their details, typing up a beginning evaluation of them while also trying to get them to come to an agreement for their first presentation. She checked her phone, 6:49pm. The group had all gone home early and she closed her laptop, switching off the lights. She walked halfway down the corridor before someone grabbed her.

'Jipy-what are you doing?', it was her stepbrother.

'You little bitch. So this is what you've been doing instead of being my secretary?', she shoved him hard.

'Me, be your secretary? Who do you think you are? I'm clearly more competent than you. If you want business advice, get in line asshole.'

'Doesn't seem like you're doing business, seems like you're hoeing around. Isn't that why you're here?'

'Wha-'

'That orphan.'

'Make some sense, will you?'

'I saw you talking to him in the afternoon. Standing awfully close. Let me guess, he dragged you into this job to be his plaything. Always could tell from the way he looked at you.'

 _Jipyeong's an orphan? Wait, that's not the point._ She felt anger rise to her chest. _He's talking bad about him when he doesn't even know anything about how good of a person he is._

'His name is Han Jipyeong, not orphan. That's not true, but even if it was, it's none of your damn business. Get out of here before you regret it.'

'Yeah? What will you do about it? You know what, keep going. You were Dad's plaything in a way, and now you're a plaything in another way. You're living a fun life. Let that pitiful orphan have fun, no matter how successful he is, the dog isn't liked by anyone', he sneered at her, walking away. She clenched her fist. _What I would give to wipe the smirk off his face. You know what-_

She caught up to him and punched him, hard. He doubled over in pain, and she held her hurting wrist, tears stinging her eyes.

'Don't ever let me hear his name in your mouth again, when you're the dog here.' She raised her arm again, only to feel someone grab her wrist. Han Jipyeong. 

'Are you hurt?'

'N-no, I-'

'Get out of here', he glared at her stepbrother, but he was already scrambling away. He sighed.

'I'm sorry, I saw him coming and I tried to catch up, but Ms Yoon wanted to talk to me and I couldn't-', he stopped to catch his breath. 

'Did you run here because of me?', she replied softly, hands reaching out to fix his flipped over tag.

'I couldn't help it. I've seen how your stepbrother isn't a nice person..', he placed a hand against his neck sheepishly. Her hands still on his tag, she contemplated what to say next, and he tried to catch her stare.

'Thank you.'

'For?'

'You've been here when I needed someone for how many times now. You always show up', she swallowed nervously.

'Don't go all sentimental on me. What's a kiss in an elevator, right? Or-'

'I punched him for you.'

'Me?'

'He told me stuff about you I didn't know.'

'Ah, that I'm an orphan? He always tries to use that against me, but it doesn't work', he replied casually.

'It's just that I didn't know..and he called you a dog. He said I'm a plaything', she told him honestly. His eyes glinted dangerously.

'Don't you dare pity me, Injae. It's okay that you found out, it's no big deal. And of course you're not a plaything, don't listen to him. What he says isn't fact, the only fact is that he's an asshole. I wasn't thinking to save you, by the way. Of course you'd be more than strong enough to fight him, but what to do about your hand? It must hurt', he replied lightly, taking the hand that was holding his tag, and kissing her palm gently. She stared at him.

'If not for that, then why'd you come?'

'Because I wanted to be there in case you got hurt. Oh, and to have dinner together', he gave her a genuine and cute dimpled smile.

'So you're like a sandbox', she stared at him teasingly. He shook his head, still smiling, and they both headed out together. Her stepbrother had made her furious mere minutes ago, but his presence calmed her. Even though her hand did hurt, she secretly thought it was worth it. _No one can dare talk about him like that._

'It's kind of cold right?', his shoulder brushed hers on the bench, overlooking the river. Rather than a restaurant, they picked up some nearby street food and chose to eat outside, alone together in a park. They had been eating in silence for a while now, and he had broken it with this question.

'No, I'm not cold. You're the one wearing a shirt..'

'I'm okay. You're warm', he quickly put food in his mouth and looked at the river, while she looked at him.

'Hey, Mr Han..'

'You want to call me that now?', he raised his eyebrow at her, rice near his lips.

'What do I call you, then?', she took the rice and put it in his mouth, fingers brushing against his lips. He cleared his throat and looked at the river again.

'C-call me Jipyeong. Oppa. I'll call you Injae. What is it you want to ask?'

'How is it that for 10 years, I didn't know that you didn't have a family? Did Dalmi know?'

'Well, Halmeoni always knew. She found me at a point where I was just a lost kid in this world. She was the only human in the entire world who cared about me at one point. She was the only person I loved, and she is such an important person to me', she felt herself soften at his endearing words, his shining eyes whenever he spoke about her. His relationship with Halmeoni was always precious, but this context made it even more so.

'As for Dalmi, I didn't tell her. I kept many things away from Dalmi, when I shouldn't have', he continued sadly. 'She found out not too long ago.'

'Did you not tell us because you thought we'd pity you?', she looked at him, and he shook his head.

'No, I just..I just find it hard to talk about myself unless I'm pushed to do so. I'm a difficult person. But Halmeoni knows that.'

'Now I do, too', she said softly.

'Why'd you cry that day?', he asked tentatively.

'I cried because I was sad, of course. And suffocated. My second family, I guess you can say, made things hard for me. I kept trying to create more success for an already successful company, and in the end I became overstressed..I lashed out at a meeting, and was embarrassed to death after, really', she paused. Jipyeong was eating slowly, contemplating upon her words, giving her time to gather her thoughts.

'I felt alone and cold. It's funny how those two go hand in hand sometimes', she continued, looking down. He tucked her hair behind her ear, hands lingering behind her neck.

'I won't let you be alone anymore, Injae. I'll be honest, I had always wanted to approach you, was always curious about you. Why you are the way you are. I guess you could say I had a crush on you, in the kind of way where I was constantly in awe of you. If it wasn't me in the elevator that day, I would've surely still been in the shadow.'

'You think I would've done that if it were someone else? It couldn't have been anyone but you.' He casually placed a hand on her thigh, and she slightly jerked in surprise. Noticing both what he had done compulsively and her reaction to it, he let go quickly.

'Let me take you home', he said in a low voice. She tried to read him, but his facial expression was undecipherable.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you guys enjoy!  
> Any feedback is appreciated :)


	4. Use me

The entire car ride to her apartment so far was quiet. Injae kept stealing wary glances at Jipyeong, whose mouth was set in a grim line. She had the sense that something was bothering him.

'Mr Han', she turned to him while they waited at a red light.

'What is it?'

'Never mind..drive, the light is green. You're almost there.' 

'I can listen and drive at the same time', he focused on the road. He parked in the driveway and turned to her.

'Thank you for taking me home. It's just..'

'Why'd you have that photo of me?', he asked suddenly.

'What?'

'In your bag. The one you left behind that day. The magazine article where I wore a grey suit.'

'You looked inside my bag??'

'No, it slipped out', his eyes shifted nervously.

'Sure it did', she said angrily. _How damn embarrassing._

'That's not the point. Why'd you have it?'

'Because your work ethic was inspiring. In case you didn't notice, it's not like I cut the photo off and kept it like some creep. It just happened to be attached to..the words you said. I was inspired', she replied quickly, cheeks flaming. 

'It couldn't have been anyone but me. What a vague statement. Did you say that because of my work ethic?', he sighed.

'Why are you being like this all of a sudden?', she glared at him. He ignored her.

'What's vague about it? And what's the big deal about a photo? You're a top businessman, I bet many people kept the same article', she continued, arms crossing over her chest. His line of vision followed the movement, before staring up at her, eyes darkened with desire.

'Because it's humiliating. I opened up my feelings to you, and you simply said it couldn't have been anyone but me.'

'You're..you're special to me too. I didn't want feelings to be in this equation at all.'

'What? So that's what I am, then. Couldn't have been anyone but me. Meaning, no one else to **use** ', he smiled coldly.

'And what about you, then? Seems you wanted to keep **feelings** out of the way until you got what you wanted, too', she came as close to his face as she could in the car, poking his chest hard.

'Don't you dare say that, what kind of man do you take me for?', he grabbed her wrist. She shook him off.

'You wanted to do it as badly as I wanted you to, don't lie. Because it made you feel good to see me like that', he continued in a low voice, something stirring in her stomach.

'I can't believe you're acting like this because you didn't hear what you wanted to hear.'

'You started it.'

'You're really dense, Han Jipyeong. Does everything have to be spelled out for you?', he remained silent.

'I'm off', she huffed, slamming the car door.

That weekend, Injae was drinking tea on her couch, watching a drama distractedly. She was thinking about the past week, she had spoken with Jipyeong stiffly a few times after their argument in the car, but he had made it clear he didn't want to speak with her. She didn't want to admit it, but she was bored. She didn't know what label to place on him, friend or not a friend or maybe more, but he added colour to her life.

She didn't feel comfortable with anyone else, and wondered how he could be that much of an idiot to not notice how she felt.

The door knocked, and Injae immediately knew it was him. _He finally wants to stop sulking._ She sighed and opened the door expectantly, not expecting to feel a heavy weight crash into her. She stumbled before regaining her balance.

'Mr Han? Why are you..', he leaned his head against her neck, breathing heavily, hot to the touch. She reached her hand out to close the door, other arm wrapping around him.

'Are you drunk?', she made him stand straight and look at her, stroking his hair. Parts of it were stuck to his sweating forehead, and she brushed these strands away.

No, I only drank a bit', he slightly slurred his words. _He clearly drank way too much._

'I don't think so. You shouldn't drink so much, you will probably regret it tomorrow', she shook her head.

'If you tell me not to drink, I won't anymore.' Just like that day in the elevator, he was bending slightly to match her height.

'Of course I don't want you to drink, it's bad for you. Why did you drink today in the first place?'

'I had a fight', the corners of his eyes were turning red.

'So that's what this is about', she moved her fingers from his lips to the bandaid on the right side of his forehead, and he flinched slightly.

'I-I went to Halmeoni first. I didn't drink then. She was passive about it.'

'What was the fight about?', she asked softly. He shook his head, pressing his lips together.

'Can I sleep here today?'

'Of course', she walked off briskly to get him a blanket, understanding his boundaries. It was clear this fight bothered him enough to drink this much, and she wasn't going to push him. He was already sitting on the couch when she was back. His eyes were closed hands held tightly against his head, aching due to how much alcohol he consumed. He took her by surprise, grabbing her so she was straddling him, blanket flying out of her hands.

'What are you-', his shaky hand reached out for her wrist, placing her fingers against his lips.

'Who's using who?', he whispered, as she stroked them before letting go. She placed both hands so that his face was between them. 

'You seem to like being under me', she stared him down, wondering if he was as honest as he was not drunk.

'I like it because you like it more', he gave her a wicked smile, laughing when she looked away.

'Isn't the word using too harsh, by the way?', she glared at him. 

'I love it when you look at me like that, all mad', he said. She huffed to herself.

'Is that why you say those things? No one's using anyone. The fact is that we're attracted to each other for..some reason', she shifted against him unintentionally.

'I do like y-you', he moaned quietly at the contact, and she sealed hers over his parted ones, unable to think anymore. Taking his wrists and pinning them on both sides next to his face, she tasted the alcohol on his soft lips, a vein on his neck popping as he tried to kiss back harder, despite her holding him down. He tried letting go, wanting to say something, and she bit his lip too hard, forcing him to part his lips again. His body softened under her overpowering one, letting her take control again, before she let go of his lips and wrists. He looked down and tried to catch his breath, arms slowly wrapping around her waist.

'What is it?', she tilted his chin.

'T-that day', he panted. She raised her eyebrows, inviting him to continue.

'I knew you liked that control. You liked that I couldn't help being loud', he stared at her darkly, too drunk to maintain his neat image.

'Wh-'

I was as loud in my apartment with only the thought of you, as I was when you actually did it', he continued, and she took his arms off her waist.

'Show me', she whispered, moving off him. The thought of him doing that was driving her crazy.

She doubted he would actually do it, but he unzipped his pants, pulling them down and sliding his hands down his boxers. She sat on his parted thigh, waiting expectantly.

'Do you want to see?', he slid a hand down his boxers, and started at a slow pace, moaning loudly. She felt herself getting turned on, his flushed cheeks and eyes clenched in pleasure were all she could see. Right when he was about to release, she took his hand away.

'W-why are you doing that? I-Injae', he groaned in frustration as she pinned both his wrists next to his face again.

'You're so dirty, Han Jipyeong. I'm not letting you release. Still, something about successful businessman Mr Han doing this is turning me on. Something about you under me drives me crazy. But I can't do this with you when you're drunk. You acted so innocent and shy the next day, but this is what you were doing the night before?'

He glared at her and moved his thigh in response, shifting it against her intentionally. He had noticed his thigh had grown damp after his performance. She moaned quietly, glaring at him. Gripping his wrists harder, she started moving against his thigh, face down so her hair was covering most of her face. He watched her intently, still not to his proper senses from the alcohol. He took her hand off one of his wrists and made her spread her legs, panties exposed, sitting on his lap now.

'Ah, why did you mov-', he pressed his thumb between her legs and she jerked in surprise. Rubbing slowly, he relished her moans as she wrapped her free hand around his neck, other one still holding his wrist. 

'Do you want me to stop?', he murmured, staring at her chest, watching her breaths grow quicker as he rubbed her at a faster place.

'N-no, keep going, please. Wait', his fingers felt too good, but she wanted his plump lips there. If they felt good against her lips, she wondered how they'd feel there.

'What do you want me to do?', her gaze on his lips told him all he needed to know. He brought her trembling legs closer to his face, pushing her panties aside, and kissed gently, teasing her. She held the back of his head and brought his lips closer, riding against his lips. He began to match her speed, lips damp and kissing, licking, sucking her, doing whatever made her moan the loudest. She held her head back in pleasure as she released, her breaths coming out rough and fast.

'C-can you let me release?', his pupils were dark as she wiped his lips, still moaning quietly from her release.

'When you're sober, you can ask me that', she smirked, placing a soft kiss on his cheek.


End file.
